A GATE safety investigation will be extended following the inquest of tragic Karolina Golabek, it was confirmed this week.

The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) said its probe into the dangers of automatic gates is pursuing “new lines of inquiry” after last month’s hearing, which looked at how the five-year-old, pictured, came to be crushed to death by a gate in Bridgend in July, 2010.

The jury in the four-day hearing at Aberdare Coroner’s Court returned a verdict of accidental death, but said the gate was unsafe due to “a series of failures, inadequacies and omissions to adhere to British Standard directives”.

Evidence from a maintenance worker during the inquest said the gate had been “poorly installed”.

And this week, the HSE confirmed it was “reviewing its investigation” as a result.

A HSE spokesman said: “The inquest did open further lines of inquiry and the HSE is pursuing and reviewing its investigation.”

Bridgend MP Madeleine Moon, who visited 10 Downing Street after Karolina’s death in 2010 to highlight the dangers of automatic gates, welcomed the news.

She said: “During the inquest, new evidence from witnesses emerged and some additional lines of inquiry were identified which the HSE needs to consider before a decision can be made about prosecution.

“Their findings will be important in ensuring that lessons are learnt from Karolina’s tragic death and measures are put in place to prevent similar accidents in the future.

“I will remain in contact with the HSE until this matter has been brought to a satisfactory conclusion.”